Picasso painting worth $70 million "accidentally damaged" before auction

Christie’s auction house has withdrawn Picasso’s Le Marin (The Sailor) from an auction set to take place in New York today (15 May) after it was “accidentally damaged” during its final preparations. The nature of the damage has, however, not been revealed.

“Two outside conservators have now been consulted and have made recommendations for the successful restoration of the painting,” Christie’s announced in a statement. After consultation with the consignors, Christie’s announced that it would be removing Le Marin from the auction in order for the necessary restoration processes to take place.

The painting, which was valued at a whopping $70 million, was owned by casino mogul Steve Wynn who seems to be bit unfortunate when it comes to high-end artworks. In 2006, it was reported that Steve accidentally put his elbow through the canvas of Le Reve, another Picasso masterpiece from 1932.

Christie’s also announced in its statement that the auction house has “a very high standard of care for the objects entrusted to us and we have taken immediate measures to remedy the matter in partnership with our client. No further information is available at this time.”